quinta-feira, maio 24, 2012

[International] The Year a Transsexual Transformed the Eurovision Song Contest
A glamorous Jewish man-turned-woman made Eurovision history in 1998 when she won the competition for Israel, attired in a sparkling dress approaching a mermaid crossed with a cockatoo.
Dana International clinched the No. 1 spot for her classic techno-pop anthem “Diva,” despite triggering orthodox Jewish outrage back in Jerusalem, where many objected to having a transsexual represent their nation.

[Japan] Transsexual Illustrator Mao Sugiyama Serves His Own Genitals as Appetizers
Last month, an illustrator from Tokyo, Japan, known by the nickname “HC”, held a special dinner during which he seasoned and braised his own amputated genitalia and served the dish to six handpicked diners. The lucky patrons who got a taste of Sugiyama’s junk paid about $250 for the meal.

[Australia] Government Urged To Subsidise Trans Surgery
Trans Activists have called upon the Federal Government to subsidise gender reassignment surgeries for transgendered people as Australia falls behind other countries on trans health.

[Canada] [Commentary] Barbara Kay: Jenna Talackova goes double dipping in the theatre of gender politics
If you are interested in the results of beauty pageants – and in this day and age, who is left that is? – you will be interested to know that Jenna Talackova failed in her bid to win the title of Miss Universe Canada. Whether you are glad or not of that outcome will depend on the station you occupy along the spectrum of gender politics.

[Canada] Transgender Canadians winning a few battles in the war for acceptance
Canada's transgender community, long plagued by discrimination and bureaucratic obstacles, is now celebrating a series of small but significant victories.
In an announcement made April 20, Montreal's Concordia University became only the second university in the country to allow transgender students to use their chosen name in class and on their ID.

[Canada] TD first Canadian bank to join ‘It Gets Better’ project
In the 20 months since it launched, a panoply of individuals and public figures – from President Obama to Star Trek’s Mr. Sulu – have posted videos online as part of the It Gets Better project, to encourage young gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people who may be struggling with their identity. Now the first of Canada’s big five financial institutions has pitched in with its own video.

[Canada] Ontario transgender bill passes 2nd reading
A bill to amend the Ontario Human Rights Code to include “gender identity” and “gender expression” in the list of prohibited grounds of discrimination passed its second reading on May 10 in the provincial legislature. Bill 33 is sponsored by NDP Cheri DiNovo, MPP (Parkdale-High Park). It is the fourth time the bill has been introduced, but the first time it has reached its second reading.

[USA] New Federal Standards Offer Unprecedented Protections to LGBTI Prisoners
Last week, the Department of Justice released the long-awaited Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) regulations, representing the first time that the federal government has issued national standards to help end sexual abuse in correctional facilities. The regulations are two years late and a lot of harm has been done in their absence, but now they will help protect important constitutional and human rights and ensure safe and fair correctional facilities that assist prisoners in rehabilitation rather than needlessly brutalizing them. This is the final of three blogs marking the occasion.

[AK, USA] [Commentary] Transgender Alaskans' privacy imperiled
A recent court order may not have attracted much media attention, but it is tremendously important to a few of us Alaskans. The order deals with the Department of Motor Vehicles' restrictions on changing the gender markers on driver's licenses for transgender Alaskans.

[KS, USA] Salina's Amended Discrimination Ordinance To Be Implemented June 4th
Salina’s amended anti-discrimination ordinance will go into effect later this week, and be implemented on June 4th.
City Commissioners last week on first reading elected to change the anti-discrimination ordinance to include sexual orientation and gender identity. The ordinance will prohibit discrimination of gay, lesbian, or transgender residents in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodations.

[ME, USA] New Anti-Bullying Law in Maine
The Maine Legislature voted last week to pass a revised version of the anti-bullying bill, LD 1237, by a vote of 32 to 2 in the Senate, and 128 to 4 in the House.

[MN, USA] The Case of CeCe McDonald: Murder—or Self-Defense Against a Hate Crime?
Around midnight on June 5, 2011, a 23-year-old African American transgender woman named Crishaun "CeCe" McDonald was walking with four friends past Schooner Tavern in Minneapolis. A group of at least four white people outside the bar began harassing McDonald and her friends, calling the group, all of whom were African American, "niggers" and "faggots." One of the men in the group, who would later be identified as Dean Schmitz, said "look at that boy dressed like a girl tucking her dick in." As McDonald and her friends tried to walk away, Schmitz's ex-girlfriend Molly Flaherty hit McDonald in the face with a glass of alcohol and sliced open her cheek, causing an injury that would later require stitches. The groups began fighting, and when McDonald attempted to leave the scene, Schmitz followed. McDonald took a pair of scissors out of her purse and turned around to face Schmitz; he was stabbed in the chest and died from the wound. Though she was injured in the scuffle with Flaherty and claimed the wound inflicted on Schmitz was in self-defense, McDonald was arrested that night and then charged with second-degree intentional murder.

[TX, USA] Texas Transgender Health Summit
Transgender Education Network of Texas in collaboration with University of Houston Clear Lake, LHI Houston, the Texas Transgender NonDiscrimination Summit, Transgender Foundation of America and experts in the health and advocacy fields invites you to a summit on July 19th, 2012 from 8:30 AM till 5PM to address the intersection of health needs and the gender diverse community.